Over the past few decades, Africa has shaped the wealth, foreign policy profile, academic success, and cultural life of America’s major cities. As part of a year-long research project, the CSIS Africa Program profiled the various ties 15 individual U.S. cities have to the continent; veering away from the recurrent themes of doom and gloom that cloud beltway arguments.
To drive home the pitch that Africa matters to the United States, we explore the dynamic ties U.S. cities have to the continent and highlight how these interactions enrich the vibrancy of local industries, political leadership, cultural life, academic institutions, and philanthropic endeavors.
Please join the CSIS Africa Program in conversation with individuals representing the cultural, political, and economic themes explored in this project. Our speakers will share their insights on how to effectively communicate Africa’s growing significance to Americans at a city-level and provide recommendations for the new Biden administration’s U.S. policy approach towards Africa. What initiatives should be prioritized to elevate the opportunities that these ties to the continent present? How do we challenge the commonly held notion that Africa lacks importance for U.S. national security?
This event is made possible through support from the Open Society Foundations.
